Former New York Federal Reserve Bank Employee and His Brother Sentenced to Prison in Manhattan Federal Court for Fraudulent Loan Schemes

U.S. Attorney’s Office
February 11, 2010

Southern District of New York(212) 637-2600

PREET BHARARA, United States Attorney for the Southern
District of New York, announced that CURTIS L. WILTSHIRE, a
former employee of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York ("FRBNY") and his brother, KENNETH WILTSHIRE, were sentenced today to
40 months and 57 months in prison, respectively, for their roles
in schemes to obtain hundreds of thousands of dollars in
fraudulent loans. The sentences were imposed today by United
States District Judge P. KEVIN CASTEL in Manhattan federal court.
CURTIS WILTSHIRE previously pleaded guilty to bank
fraud and aggravated identity theft. KENNETH WILTSHIRE
previously pleaded guilty to mail fraud and aggravated identity
theft. The sentences imposed today include a mandatory minimum
two-year sentence imposed on aggravated identity theft charges.
According to the Indictment of CURTIS WILTSHIRE, the
Superseding Information filed with respect to KENNETH WILTSHIRE,
other documents filed in this case, and statements made in
Manhattan federal court:

CURTIS WILTSHIRE previously worked as an information
and technical analyst at the FRB-NY in lower Manhattan. In that
capacity, he had access to the personal identification
information of many FRB-NY employees, including names, dates of
birth, Social Security numbers, and photographs.

In 2006, CURTIS WILTSHIRE stole identification
information from FRB-NY and provided that information to his
brother, KENNETH WILTSHIRE. Both brothers then used that
identification information, and additional identification
information KENNETH WILTSHIRE had stolen elsewhere, to apply for,
and obtain, educational loans in the names of the stolen
identities. Over the course of the scheme, CURTIS and KENNETH
WILTSHIRE collectively sought student loans in an amount over
$450,000.

KENNETH WILTSHIRE also engaged in a scheme, using the
stolen identification information and photographs, to apply for
boat and recreational vehicle loans. In the course of this
scheme, KENNETH WILTSHIRE sought loans in an amount over
$525,000.

Among the actions taken in order to execute the
fraudulent student, boat, and recreational vehicle loans schemes,
were the following: the creation of fake college and university
transcripts and related documents; the manufacture of fake
identification documents, such as driver's licenses, some of
which contained photographs of employees of the FRB-NY; the
creation of fake utility bills, tax returns, and W-2 documents;
the opening of bank and brokerage accounts into which the
fraudulently obtained loan proceeds could be deposited; and the
use of prepaid cellular telephones, so that lenders could contact
CURTIS and KENNETH WILTSHIRE about the fraudulent loan
applications in a way that would not be easily associated with
the defendants.

In addition to the prison term, CURTIS WILTSHIRE, 35,
of Staten Island, was sentenced to three years of supervised
release and was ordered to forfeit $200,000. Restitution for
CURTIS WITSHIRE will be decided at a later date.
In addition to the prison term, KENNETH WILTSHIRE, 41,
of Staten Island, was sentenced to three years of supervised
release and was ordered to pay over $1 million in restitution and
to forfeit $525,160.
In imposing sentence on CURTIS WILTSHIRE, Judge CASTEL
stated that such schemes "undermine faith in good, worthy
programs," and called his theft of identities from the FRB-NY "a
special breach of trust."

In imposing sentence on KENNETH WILTSHIRE, Judge CASTEL
stated that schemes like these are a "tear in the public fabric"
that "undermine support for public programs that may be
worthwhile."
Mr. BHARARA praised the investigative work of the
Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Postal
Inspection Service in this case. He also thanked the Federal
Reserve Bank of New York for its assistance in the investigation.

This case is being handled by the Complex Frauds Unit
of the United States Attorney's Office. Assistant United States Attorneys
DANIEL W. LEVY and ZACHARY FEINGOLD are in charge of
these prosecutions.